Application): University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC) proposes to give selected minority students an excellent opportunity to conduct biomedical research at an internationally recognized research facility different from their own. These six students, who are participants in the nationally renowned Meyerhoff Scholarship program, will conduct research for twelve weeks at Lancaster University in Lancaster, England. They will complete specific projects under the direction of accomplished scientific investigators in the Biological Sciences, Psychology and Environmental Sciences Departments at Lancaster. In addition to being integral members of their laboratories, trainees will participate in a """"""""Summer Science Seminar Series,"""""""" keep a journal, write an abstract and scientific report, and participate in cultural awareness activities. Upon their return, trainees will present their research at local and national meetings such as the UMBC Undergraduate Student Research Day, the National Minority Research Symposium and the National Conference of Undergraduate Research. PROGRAM DIRECTION: The Principal Investigator of the MMRTP is Mrs. Earnestine +_________________ B. Baker, who is also the Director of the Meyerhoff Scholarship program. The co-PI is Dr. Freeman Hraboswski, President of UMBC and founder of the Meyerhoff Scholarship Program. Mrs. Baker received her Masters in Secondary Education from the Prairie View A&M University in l979. She has been Director of the Meyerhoff Scholarship since l992 and lists no publications and includes no information related to her international skills or experience, although she has visited Lancaster on two occasions to observe the MMIRTP students. Dr. Lisa Morgan will serve as the MMIRTP coordinator. Dr. Morgan received her Ph.D. in Pharmacology from the University of Iowa in l989 and has no publications or abstracts since l993. She will be primarily coordinating and administrating the program. All of the UMBC personnel listed in the proposal are primarily involved in the administration of the program. Six UMBC faculty and one UMBC MIRT student will comprise the Advisory Committee, but none will accompany the students to Lancaster. Of the 13 Lancaster faculty mentors, 9 are either Lecturers or Senior Lecturers, with varying degrees of expertise and publication records. It appears that the Lancaster faculty mentors are well- qualified to train the students, but it is not clear how they interact with minority students and if they provide necessary insides for students to pursue graduate studies in the US
